[Mau05] Abstract Models of Computation in Cryptography

Authors: Maurer, Ueli | Venue: IMA Cryptography and Coding 2005 (LNCS 3796) | Source

Abstract

This paper proposes a general framework for abstract models of computation in cryptography, of which the random oracle model and the generic group model are special cases. In Maurer’s formulation, a computation model is defined by an interface that specifies a set of oracles available to an algorithm, modeling access to an idealized cryptographic object. This approach yields a clean algebraic characterization of “generic” algorithms — those that interact with a group only through a homomorphism — and provides a foundation for comparing different idealized models via reductions between interfaces.